Need a financial backup plan? Why you should consider a SLAT

Description

Abstract: Perhaps the most effective estate-planning strategies involve the use of irrevocable trusts. If a marriage is strong, a spousal lifetime access trust (SLAT) allows the husband or wife to obtain the benefits of an irrevocable trust while creating a financial backup plan. This article notes that a SLAT is simply an irrevocable trust — which may be an irrevocable life insurance trust (ILIT) — that authorizes the trustee to make distributions to one’s spouse if a need arises. Like other irrevocable trusts, a SLAT can be designed to benefit children, grandchildren or future generations.